Pick-and-roll may be Nets winning formula

After tonight’s 113-93 drubbing of the Sacramento Kings, the Brooklyn Nets have now won five of six games in the P.J. Carlesimo era. There’s more than enough credit to go around — MarShon Brooks and Mirza Teletovic both had their best games of the season, six Nets scored in double figures, and the Nets got efficient nights from almost all of their rotation players — Carlesimo noted that the Nets have only made one major tweak to the offense.

“The only thing we’ve really done differently is tried to put Brook (Lopez) in more pick-and-rolls, to feature his shooting and stretch the defense out,” Carlesimo said. “The other stuff is more a function of more guys playing well.”

The Nets opened the game with a simple pick-and-roll play with Lopez and Deron Williams. Williams drove around the screen and got to the hoop for an easy layup. “Brook’s a good pick-and-roll guy, pick-and-pop guy, especially when he’s hitting that 17-19 foot shot, which he has been lately,” Williams said after the game. “It opens (the lane) up. The more we run pick-and-roll, the better for everybody, because it spaces the floor out.”

“It’s just something we’ve been working on in practice, and applying it to games,” Lopez added. “It’s been effective.”

The Nets have scored 108.3 points per 100 possessions in the last six games, over five points above their season average before this stretch and a number that would currently rank fourth overall in the NBA this season.

Carlesimo also stressed that his big men were getting the ball in a better position to score closer to the basket, and that Andray Blatche in particular had changed his game up a bit. “We’re not iso-ing him every play out near the three-point line and him doing spins and all this stuff. The plays he’s finished in the last four or five games, he’s finished a lot of shots in the paint, and he’s finished them more authoritatively than he was earlier in the year.”